Black Friday in Boulder: Deal-seeking shoppers get early start

Hundreds wait at Target, Best Buy in Boulder on Thanksgiving

For much of Thursday, it seemed that Target's decision to open on Thanksgiving would be a bust.

In Boulder there were no tents. No lines. Not one person, until around 7:30 p.m. when a lonely pair walked up to the door.

But by 8:45 p.m., the line stretched to Walnut Street, swelling to some 400 people by 9 p.m. when the store opened.

Black Friday is officially Black Thursday.

Sears, Toys “R” Us and Walmart also were scheduled to start their Black Friday sales on Thanksgiving this year. FlatIron Crossing mall in Broomfield and Sports Authority were scheduled to open at 12 a.m. Friday.

The National Retail Federation survey forecasted up to 147 million people plan to shop Black Friday weekend, spending $586.1 billion, a 4.1 percent increase from last year.

The holiday season historically accounts for 20 percent of retailers' annual sales, and Target appeared to be on its way to a successful Thanksgiving weekend as shoppers chatted excitedly about deals on Blu-Ray DVDs, $279 HDTVs, $49 Nooks and $199 Xboxes.

Target spokesman Shawn Jones said the crowd seemed bigger than the last few years, possibly because shoppers had a chance to get deals without losing any sleep.

That was the philosophy of 62-year-old Randy Davis and his sister Sharon Hair, 65, who arrived a little before 8:30 p.m.

“I'm not going to stay up all night,” Davis said.

Hair chimed in: “I'd much rather get in line at night than early in the morning.”

A group of women at the front of the line said they didn't mind shopping encroaching on their Thanksgiving time, but said they felt bad for employees who had to spend the holiday at work instead of at home.

Kelly Beveridge, 47, said she'd prefer a more traditional Black Friday with stores opening in the wee hours of Friday morning.

Beveridge and her friends planned to rush in and out of Target, hit up Walmart and the FlatIron Crossing mall and then get a little rest before waking up for more Friday.

At Boulder's Best Buy, the line wrapped around the side of the building as customers waited for the store's midnight opening.

Esteban Rayos, a 16-year-old Boulder High student, arrived at 7 a.m. Thursday, and was surprised to find no one waiting in line.

“I thought people were going to be camping, but I guess not,” Rayos said.

In Longmont, 16-year-old Christian Mucha pitched his tent outside Best Buy at 10 p.m. Monday for a flat-screen TV, three days before the store's midnight opening on Friday.

Rayos said he was 20th in line last year, which didn't cut it. He ended up missing out on a few deals, so this year, he came even earlier. Rayos planned to grab two laptops and an HDTV.

University of Colorado sophomore Gookjin Jeong waited a little farther down the line with his sister, who was visiting from Korea. He too planned to leave the store with an HDTV and two laptops.

Jeong, who arrived at 8 a.m. Thursday, said he'd never camped out before.

This year the deals were too good to pass up, he said. The $349.95 laptop deal comes with a carrying sleeve, mouse and flash drive, which enticed Jeong.

“I thought a lot more people would be here for the computers, but it's just them,” Jeong said, motioning to the five or so people in line in front of him. “It's such a good deal.”

Others waiting in line for the first time wanted to see what the Black Friday fuss was about. Radha Guragain, 26, said electronics are “so expensive” every other day of the year that she figured waiting in line would be worth it.